Hi there! Fellow climbers @ Vancouver Rock Climbing Group have launched a Climbers Unite! $1-1Climb for Japan climbing/fundraising series! Seeing the devastation in Japan, we are really sad and really want to help out in whatever ways we can! We would like to extend this to the whole climbing community to UNITE ALL CLIMBERS to help out Japan! We Climbers support each other's life on the rope and have a strong tradition of mutual help spirit, love for life/climbing, and triumph over hardships! Let our unity triumph over this challenge!

*All donations will go to Care for Canada. If you want to donate to other agencies, feel free to! You can also climb/belay at your own time, outside the events. It's all about a collective involvement, spirit and help for Japan.

This campaign is OPEN to all! You can climb/fundraise at your own time and donate whatever amount to any agencies you see fit. $10, $100, $1000, it doesn't matter! But please join the facebook group to show the Climbers' Unity! Joining the event in our group www.vrcg.ca and donating through the Care for Canada site we set up is only one of the many options!

This campaign is OPEN to all! You can climb/fundraise at your own time and donate whatever amount to any agencies you see fit. $10, $100, $1000, it doesn't matter! But please join the facebook group to show the Climbers' Unity! Joining the event in our group www.vrcg.ca and donating through the Care for Canada site we set up is only one of the many options!

How do you make sure its getting to the Japanese victims? How would someone know that if they donate $10 its going to help the victims and its not some scam? I'm hoping some doctors will volunteer and help the Japanese people through this crisis.

Great question! Very important to always check 2 things before donating:

1. Check if the charity is real and not a scam: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/chrts-gvng/dnrs/menu-eng.html

2. Check the efficiency of the charity e.g. http://www.charitynavigator.org/. How much $ goes to helping the people and how much goes to admin cost.

I have worked in non-profit and I know donations can be hugely wasted by excessive admin overheads and staffing.

To be honest, the best way to make sure the money goes directly to the cause is to go there ourselves volunteering money and skills. Unfortunately, it's not always (if not most of the time) possible in real life and we have to trust some professionals hopefully they will deliver our money without costing too much in the middle process.

Thanks everyone for the support! We are now at $875 (counting only donations through our site)! Keep sharing this global facebook group http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=152959664765657 to the whole world, showing Climbers' United Power!

Useful info for donations:1. Check if the charity is real and not a scam: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/chrts-gvng/dnrs/menu-eng.html

2. Check the efficiency of the charity e.g. http://www.charitynavigator.org/. How much $ goes to helping the people and how much goes to admin cost.

First event: North Vancouver The Edge this Sun (Mar20) 12-9pm (drop by anytime! We will have chocolates!) The Edge has sponsored us admissions: $0 for Belayer, 50% for donating Climbers! Thanks The Edge for their support!

Remember, you can also climb with your friends at your global locations, have lots of fun and unite climbers!

2. Official posters are out! Thanks to volunteer Designer Lidia! Please help us to print out and post it at your location to unite ALL CLIMBERS! *We have already posted the posters at these locations so you can skip them: - Cliffhanger Richmond/Vancouver/Coquitlam, The Edge

(you can print either version, the one without the specific date) http://www.facebook.com/l/8eec7iuWcIf62Z__iYl9bciWRkQ/https%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2Fviewer%3Fa%3Dv%26pid%3Dexplorer%26chrome%3Dtrue%26srcid%3D0B2lv25yiVrcDODdiNzQzN2EtMzhlMS00Yjk3LWI5MzctY2NhOTVkNDA2NGEz%26hl%3Den

Suggested style:You climb and for each climb or boulder you top, you raise $1 by asking your friends (or yourself) to sponsor you. - V0: $5/boulder - V4/5: $25/boulder - V8+: $50/boulder *This is just a suggested donation/style. You are welcome to join us to climb, belay, cheer for each other, take photos, hang out... even if you aren't donating financially!

*Or you can donate to other agencies, you see fit, remember: 1. Check if the charity is real and not a scam: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/chrts-gvng/dnrs/menu-eng.html 2. Check the efficiency of the charity e.g. http://www.charitynavigator.org/. How much $ goes to helping the people and how much goes to admin cost.